Return of the Titans

Chapter 4

There were no words to describe the scene that lay before Mel and Buddy. The village was utterly destroyed, wiped off the face of the earth by the earthquake. There was debris everywhere and the stench of death hung in the air. Mel could feel the vomit threatening to spew out.

"Are you gonna be okay man?" Buddy asked, resting his hand on his friend's shoulder. Swallowing hard, Mel weakly rasped, "Yeah, I'll be alright. Let's do this. Do you have everything you need?" Hoisting the camera up on his shoulder, Buddy gave his pal a thumbs up as he added, "Got a spare in the bag yet too."

"Sounds good. Let's film... over there," Mel suggested, pointing over to a small hill near what probably once was a farmhouse. Nodding his head in agreement, Buddy followed his partner over to the location. He stood facing Mel while the reporter stood facing him with his back turned to the remains of the village. Counting down with his fingers, the cameraman declared, "Live in three, two, one."

Showtime.

"Hello America, this is Mel Pug live at the scene. As you can see behind me, this is just one of the many villages struck by the earthquake in Chile this morning," Mel explained the situation to all the viewers watching from home. He was about to say more when a bone chilling hiss echoed in the air. Then the ground started shaking again. Dropping the camera, Buddy grabbed Mel as he shouted, "It's an aftershock! Get down!"

The two friends got off the hill and crouched down as the earth shook and cracked tremendously. Trees fell and the buildings that survived the first quake crumbled away. Mel and Buddy stayed where they were, huddling together and praying it would soon be over. Little did they know that the earthquake was not the major threat.

His eyes squeezed shut, Mel was whispering prayers so rapidly it would make a professional rapper jealous. He almost didn't hear the hiss again. But he did hear it. His eyes snapping open, he looked up in time to watch as a gigantic red serpent rose from the jungle with an ear splitting roar. Horrified by the sight, Mel mumbled breathlessly, "What in God's name is that?"

"God didn't make that," Buddy murmured, equally terrified, "The Devil did."